Asia Pulp and Paper says it will stop logging virgin rainforest

TONY EASTLEY: One of the world's largest pulp and paper companies says it will no longer log virgin rain forests.

Asia Pulp and Paper, or APP, sells its products into 65 countries including Australia.

Conservation groups have accused it of illegally logging protected species and directly threatening the endangered Sumatran tiger.

Indonesia correspondent George Roberts spoke to the World Wildlife Fund's Aditya Bayunanda about the announcement.

ADITYA BAYUNANDA: It is a big deal and if they're serious with this commitment I think the conservation movement will appreciate this. And I think it's a need to work together, I guess, not just APP but also other groups and all the stakeholders.

But again I think we need to clarify again whether these commitments are real.

GEORGE ROBERTS: What makes you suspicious that these promises won't be stuck to?

ADITYA BAYUNANDA: Well there is already quite a long history of broken promises, yeah.

APP has several times committed to 100 per cent stop of natural forest clearance. They've got a timetable for 2004. They missed that.

They've put it again for 2007. They missed that one again. They put again for 2009. They missed that as well.

So there is this track record of APP not fulfilling its commitments.

So I don't think it's wrong for civil society and environmental groups to be a little bit suspicious that this time around it will be the same.

GEORGE ROBERTS: Making such a major announcement like this, doesn't this kind of hold them to account in the public sphere anyway?

ADITYA BAYUNANDA: Yes, yes, yes. And I think that's actually a good point for them, yeah. So I think it's a promising commitment.

But I think we still reserve the right to be a little bit - what do you call it - speculative? But we will verify that on the ground.

And if we do find that there is, you know, indeed natural forest clearance has stopped, that the bulldozers have stopped, then we will not say otherwise.

GEORGE ROBERTS: APP has identified a group called the Forest Trust that will undertake the assessments. Is that a reliable group?

ADITYA BAYUNANDA: We would only trust an independent third party and the Forest Trust now are more like a consultant that is contracted by APP. But I don't think that qualifies them as an independent third party monitoring.

TONY EASTLEY: The World Wild Life Fund's Aditya Bayunanda speaking there with our correspondent George Roberts in Indonesia.

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